Funeral of Barbara Mackenzie: Audio Sermon (28-Aug-2012)

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Funeral of Barbara Mackenzie [Matthew 6:25-34] (28-Aug-2012)

This sermon was preached at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Traralgon, 11am.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Text: (Matthew 6:25-34)

Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.

Prayer: Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

With the last year or so, Barbara chose with me the readings and hymns to be sung at her funeral today. Actually, she said that what she really wanted at her funeral was to be carried down the main street of Yinnar followed by a New Orleans Jazz band. But she wanted very much to have this reading from Matthew read at her funeral.

And in this reading, Jesus invites us to do two things: birdwatching, and gardening. He says: “Look at the birds of the air.” “Consider the lilies of the field.”

But right at the heart of this reading about birds and lilies, Jesus teaches us about the great value of human life: that every life is precious in God’s eyes, every person is unique, every person is created in his image, and every death is precious, and especially every Christian death, because it is an occasion of so much joy for all the saints and angels, even though we are left with our grief and sadness. But Jesus says earlier in the passage before our reading for today: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

But our reading today begins with the words:

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

This bible passage is so well-known to many people, and many people can easily skip over it, thinking that it is just some good advice for life. But it is much more than that—it is the words of the God who made you, and the Saviour who Redeemed you.

And so, Jesus says: “Look at the birds of the air.” Go and do some bird-watching. But he wants you not just the look at the birds, but to notice and find the hand of God. Jesus says: “Your heavenly Father feeds them.” It isn’t simply the mother bird who feeds her chicks, but it is God’s own hand who has sent the mother bird to look after them. It isn’t just the early bird who has found the worm, but it is the same heavenly Father who feeds you who gives the early bird the worm.

And so, all the birds in Barbara’s garden, all the birds on Raymond Island are being fed constantly by the hand of God. They don’t even sow, or reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. God created them for his good pleasure, and for his enjoyment, and also for our enjoyment.

And then Jesus says: “Are you not of more value than they?”

If God was feeding the birds in Barbara’s garden, how much more was God feeding Barbara? If God was feeding all the chicks in every birds nest, how much more was your heavenly Father feeding Barbara’s whole family and looking after them? And does God stop looking after and feeding each bird when the mother is taken away? How much more will your heavenly Father still keep looking after you, even though he has taken Barbara away from you in this life?

And so Jesus says: And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Listen to these words: “Which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” All the days of our life are numbered, and each day is precious. You can’t prolong your life—neither could Barbara. In Job, it says: “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Also, in Genesis we read about Enoch, where it says: “Enoch walked with God, and he was not found, for God took him.”

God has given us so much through Barbara—and now God has taken away. God took her. But it’s not the time to blame God for doing something unfair, but to praise him for doing something gracious and loving. God knows that you are still living, God knows that you need comfort in your mourning, and strength to face a new day without the person that you loved.

And so, Jesus says: “Consider the lilies of the field.” Go and do some gardening. But he wants you not just the look at the lilies and the plants, but to notice and find the hand of God. Jesus says: “God clothes the grass of the field.” The flowers and plants don’t clothe themselves, the flowers, the lilies, the roses, don’t wake up one morning and decide what colour they want to put on. It is God himself who clothes them—he invents the colours, and he is the one who gives to each plant its beauty.

And so, all the plants and flowers in Barbara’s garden are being clothed constantly by the hand of God. They don’t even toil and spin, and yet even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Jesus says, not even the greatest of kings in history with all their robes and crowns and jewellery and finery are as wonderfully clothed as one single lily. God created them for his good pleasure, and for his enjoyment, and also for our enjoyment.

And then Jesus says: “If God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?”

If God was clothing the plants in Barbara’s garden, how much more was God clothing Barbara? If God was clothing all the buds on every plant, how much more was your heavenly Father clothing Barbara’s whole family and looking after them? And does God stop looking after and clothing each seedling when the original plant is taken away? How much more will your heavenly Father still keep looking after you, even though he has taken Barbara away from you in this life?

“If God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?”

Jesus throws in a little word there for our humility: “O you of little faith.” He knows all very well that we’re weak, and that we’re weak in faith. He knows that we don’t trust in our heavenly Father like we should, and we get anxious and toil and labour as if there’s no such thing as God. The more the people of our world and society disbelieve in God, the less they enjoy their work and the more they work themselves into the ground.

But Jesus doesn’t say this to make us despair. He knows we’re of little faith, but he wants to encourage us. “Will he not much more clothe you?”

Grass and flowers are here today and gone tomorrow. Barbara was here yesterday and gone today, but he still clothes you.

And so Jesus says: Therefore do not be anxious, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “what shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Jesus shows us that what he has said is of such importance that it is has to do with the difference between being a Christian and a pagan. He says: “The Gentiles seek after all these things.” Gentiles live in such a way that there’s no god, or that something else is god that is not actually God, and so they seek food, drink and clothing in such a way that they make themselves the gods.

Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

Today, Jesus also teaches us that your heavenly Father knows that you need comfort in your mourning, and encouragement in the face of death. Gentiles will seek various ways and means to make themselves feel better, but God will look after you. He has looked after Barbara for so many years, and given her so much joy and so many times of joy even when a Gentile, and a person of little faith like us, would have expected that the only thing she would have received would have been sorrow.

And so Jesus gives us his holy encouragement when he says: Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

The kingdom of God and the righteousness of God will still remain when there is no need for food and drink and clothing. The kingdom of God continues even now in Barbara, a baptised child of God, and we are who are left behind on the other side of the grace are part of that same kingdom. This is the kingdom of the Holy Spirit which is given through the clear and pure word of God. And Jesus teaches that it is a kingdom that is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field. It is like a mustard seed that grows up into a great tree with all the birds coming to nest in its branches. It is like a pearl of great value. It is like a net cast into the sea and dragging up a great catch of fish.

Also, Jesus says seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Most people think that God’s righteousness means doing good things, and doing good works, and making sure we are honest citizens. But this sort of thing doesn’t save us. Because we are always labouring, and being anxious, toiling, spinning, and worrying about the future and everything that we have to do.

Jesus knows that we are people of little faith. That’s why he was strong for us in dying on the cross and rising from the dead. And now he gives us his righteousness in exchange for our little faith. Jesus makes himself poor, and gives us his riches. He becomes our sin even though he is not a sinner, and gives us his righteousness, he speaks his righteousness onto us through the forgiveness of our sins, so that we are righteous even though we are nothing but people of little faith.

Jesus bore our griefs in his flesh and deep in his soul—even though in his own life he had no reason for it. He said: “My soul is greatly troubled.” And so, through his clear word, Jesus creates joy, even when we think there is no reason for it. Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted.

Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Amen.

Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for Barbara, and for the many things that you have given to us through her. We thank you for her life, and we pray that in our time of sadness, you would strengthen us in your care and comfort us with the heavenly comfort of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Trinity 12: Audio Sermon (26-Aug-2012)

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Trinity 12 [Mark 7:31-37] (26-Aug-2012)

This sermon was preached at St Paul's Lutheran Church, Darnum (9am, lay reading), Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Traralgon (10am), Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yarram (2pm) and St John's Lutheran Church, Sale (4pm).

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Text: (Mark 7:31-37)

And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we come to you in boldness and confidence as your dear children, calling on you, our dear Father. Let your Word be taught in its truth and purity, and help us to lead holy lives according to it, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our reading today is simple enough to understand, in that there is a deaf and mute man brought to Jesus who is healed. And on this particular occasion, Jesus uses signs and gestures to accompany his words. He puts his fingers in his ears, he touches his tongue with his spit, he looks up to heaven, he sighs.

And St Mark’s gospel is also a very interesting one. The New Testament books are all written in the Greek language, but most of these events and discussions that took place didn’t take place in the Greek language. The Old Testament was written in Hebrew, because it was the language of the Jewish people. And the Jewish people were the custodians of God’s word right up until the time of Jesus, so it was important that these Scriptures were written in the Hebrew language so that they could understand them and use them. St Paul writes in Romans 3: “The Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God.”

But at the time of Jesus, Greek was the most widely spoken language in the Gentile world. Since Jesus commanded his disciples to preach the gospel to all nations, they needed to write the New Testament down in a language that the most people could understand. So they wrote these things down in Greek. Today, we might use English. Even though there are more Chinese and Spanish speakers in the world, English is spoken by the most number of people in the most number of countries. (But of course, don’t tell the French.)

But in St Mark’s gospel, he often tells us what Jesus says in his mother tongue, in Aramaic, which was the dialect of Hebrew most commonly spoken in Jesus’ time. So when he raises up a little girls, St Mark tells us, that he said, “Talitha Cumi” which means, “Little girl, I say to you arise.” Also, as in the other gospels, we read where Jesus prays on the cross in Aramaic, “Eloi, eloi, lama sabachtani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Also, throughout Mark’s gospel the disciples often call him by the Hebrew title, “Rabbi.” And when Jesus is in the garden of Gethsemane, St Mark reports that Jesus calls his Father, “Abba”, which is Aramaic for father.

All of this gives us a little window into the day-to-day life of Jesus, as a person who existed in history, living among certain people, and in certain places, and confirms the bible as an historical book, not one that is plucked out of the air.

And so, also in our Gospel reading, we also have an example of Jesus’ mother tongue, where he says to this deaf and dumb man, “Ephphatha”, which means, “Be opened.” And, it says, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly.

And not only was this man’s ears opened, but also the people who were listening in the crowd also had their ears opened, so much so that St Mark saw fit to record the word that Jesus spoke in the exact language that he spoke it in. But also, their mouths were also opened, so that they spoke a great confession of faith: “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

“He has done all things well.” We could also translate this as: “He has made all things good.”

Now in the Hebrew language, this takes us back to the first book of Genesis, where it says, “God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” And so also on this occasion, the crowd say, “He has made all things good, He has done all things well.”

And so, it’s very important that we see this passage here as talking not just about some magic superman who did a little magic trick, but about a true man who is also true God. When Jesus touched the man’s ear, it was not just a man’s touch, but it was God’s touch. It was God’s own finger, the same finger that was shaping and forming the world at the beginning of creation, making all things well.

This man who was deaf and mute was oppressed by the devil. All disease, all sickness, every sadness, every sorrow is not God’s creation. It is the devil’s corruption of God’s good creation. Right in the Garden of Eden, we see the serpent corrupting God’s word: “Did God really say?” And then throughout the rest of history, the devil is always corrupting God’s creation. And so each person who is born in this world is now born in sin, but not only that, but we are born into corruption, and sorrow, and sadness, and pain. We don’t come out of our mother’s womb laughing, we come out crying, and our mothers give birth to us with a great deal of crying and sadness and suffering.

This is not how God created things to be. When he created things, he saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. He also created people and the angels with a free will, so that they could love him freely. God never forces anything on anyone. But then, the devil at sometime unknown to us fell into sin, and then dragged the human race into sin with him.

St John says in his first letter: “The reason why the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

That’s what happens in our reading today. A man is brought to Jesus—a beautiful, precious man created in God’s image, but with the devil’s handiwork also written on him, by no specific actual sin of this man, even though we know the man is a sinner, but purely because the devil just likes to stuff things up for us and make people unhappy.

And so this man is brought to Jesus and he makes a new creation. He opens the man’s ears and mouth. He makes a new creation—out of nothing. It’s just like turning water into wine—he creates something new out of nothing. Jesus demonstrates himself as the one true God, and at the same time, he demonstrates himself as the one true God who is not a tyrant like the devil, but he demonstrates himself as one who loves the people whom he has made, and has compassion on everyone, and who wants to make people happy. Jesus wants to lift up each sad face, he wants to wipe away every sad tear, he wants to give confidence and courage to everyone who is fearful, and he gives all these things to us, not because there is anything there in us that he has to change into something better, but he simply creates something new out of nothing, he simply speaks his word and everything is created. Jesus makes everything new, everything fresh, everything joyful and happy, through his word, only through his word, and through nothing but his word.

The devil holds all our sins before our eyes and rubs our face in it. He says, “Look, you hypocrite! You haven’t loved God with all your heart! Look, you second-rate philosopher! You haven’t loved God with all your mind! Look, you angry, greedy, lustful person! You haven’t loved God with all your soul! Look, you weak, pathetic sad-sack! You haven’t loved God with all your strength!”

The devil wants to rub our face in it. And when the devil says this, we know he’s right. The Holy Spirit also testifies that the devil is right. God’s own law testifies that the devil is right. And our own conscience testifies that he is right. And so then we think that there’s no way out, and we’re just left by ourselves with no light at the end of the tunnel, and no God.

But then Jesus comes to us with his resurrected pierced hands, and his resurrected wounded side, and he says, “Come on, Thomas, put your hand in there, stick your finger in.” And Thomas says, “There is a God after all! You, Jesus, are my Lord and my God.”

And Jesus creates everything new. He works completely outside all the law, completely outside of what we think we deserve, what the devil thinks we deserve, what everyone in the world thinks is good advice, and he comes to us with the wisdom of cross, which everyone else things is nonsense, and he says to us: “I forgive you completely freely.” My blood has paid the price for you. Let me stick my finger in your ear and touch your tongue. Let me open you up. And we say, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.”

And so on this occasion in our gospel reading, Jesus says to this man, “Be opened.” “Ephphatha.”

+++

Often it’s a very useful thing for us as Christians to listen to the Christians of the past and to take notice of how they used certain passages to talk about certain things. It’s important that we listen to the Christian wisdom of centuries past, and even sit for a moment under their folly, and take note of what they are saying. In this parish, I have developed a reputation for liking old books, and if I quote something from the 1880s or something, someone says, “Pastor, that’s a bit modern for you, isn’t it?”

But we all need to listen to the Christians of the past, because God says in the commandments, “Honour your father and your mother”. This includes our fathers and mothers in the faith, because we are not the first people to receive the Holy Spirit.

Our Gospel reading today has been used throughout the centuries in a very specific place in our liturgy. Can you think where?

It’s used at the occasion of baptism. Right from the early times, at the time of the Reformation, and even up to today, when we baptise a person, we say, “The Lord made the deaf hear and dumb speak. Therefore, in his name I say, “Be opened”, that you may hear and speak the word of God.” In earlier times, they even used to use the word “Ephphatha” as part of the baptism liturgy.

Now, why do you think this is part of our baptism service?

John Lennox, an English Christian, appeared on the show Q&A on the ABC last year, and he was asked, “If God spoke to Moses in the burning bush, and parted the Red Sea and all that sort of thing, why is God silent today and not speaking anymore?” And John Lennox said, “I think it’s not that God isn’t speaking, it’s that we’re not listening.”

He’s right. We’re not listening. The word of God is read and spoken every Sunday in the church, and we don’t regard it as the word of God. Parishioners don’t regard the preaching of their pastors as the word of God. Pastors don’t regard the preaching of other pastors as the word of God. Children don’t regard the words of their parents and teachers as the word of God. Employees don’t regard the words of their bosses as the word of God.

But our ears are closed to hearing the word of God, and our mouths are closed to speaking it, unless Jesus himself comes and opens our ears and mouths. If only our mouths were as bold in speaking as our ears are attentive in listening. If only our ears were much more open than our mouths remain shut.

And so, as people who are under the authority of others, we must not simply obey them when they speak, but serve them in showing them where they have not spoken God’s word when they should have. We might receive some flack for this—but Jesus gives us persecution right in the middle of our vocations.

As people who are in authority over others, we must not lord it over other people, but serve them not with our own opinions, but with the opinions of God, and with the words of God.

This means that we need to turn to our risen Lord Jesus often in repentance, and ask him to forgive our deafness when we should have been listening, and forgive us our shut mouths when we should have been speaking. Jesus comes to us in all our deafness and dumbness and opens our ears and opens our mouths daily. He makes all things new, and speaks to us his grace and his forgiveness, richly, daily, new, afresh.

We must realise that this reading has a spiritual meaning for us, and that Jesus heals us of our spiritual deafness and our spiritual dumbness. But this isn’t something abstract, or psychadellic, or pretend. Jesus cures us in the flesh, in the body, in time, in history, really, actually and factually.

Because the words that our risen Lord Jesus Christ speaks to us today in the church, are the same words which will rise your dead bodies on the last day, they are the same words which will create a resurrection out of nothing, and breath life into the dry bones.

The words that Jesus speaks to you are Spirit and life, and he will raise you up on the last day. The Holy Spirit is given in Holy Baptism to us now, amid all our suffering and grief and mourning as a guarantee, a down-payment, of the wonderful resurrection and new life.

The body and blood of Christ is given to you so that you may be strengthen in body and soul until life eternal.

Your baptism is not a symbolic death, or a symbolic act of dying, or drowning—but it is an actual drowning of your flesh, an actual pouring out of the Holy Spirit, an actual sprinkling of Christ’s blood and an actual forgiving of all your sins, and an actual rising to new life.

As Jesus says: “This is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

Jesus has opened you. Eternal life has begun. We don’t see it, we don’t feel it. We only see our flesh, things getting worse, everything bad in us and around us. But Jesus’ word says it! “Be opened.” Your ears have been opened, your mouth has been opened. Jesus side has been opened, his hands have been nailed. And the door to eternal life has been opened, and it will never be shut.

He has done all thing well. He has even made the deaf hear and the mute speak.

Amen.

Lord Jesus Christ, how deaf we are in listening to you, and how often we keep our mouths shut when we are asked for an edifying word. Open our ears, that we may hear your word, and open our lips that our mouths may tell of your praise. Amen.

Trinity 11: Audio Sermon (19-Aug-2012)

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Trinity 11 [Luke 18:9-14] (19-Aug-2012)

This sermon was preached at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Fareham, Hampshire, UK (10:30am), St Paul's Lutheran Church, Darnum (9am, lay reading), Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Traralgon (11am, lay reading), and Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Bairnsdale (3pm, lay reading).

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Text (Luke 18:9-14):

But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, send us all your Holy Spirit, so that I may preach well, and we all may hear well, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


On one occasion, a lawyer explained the commandments to Jesus like this: "You love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength, and you shall love your neighbour as yourself." And Jesus answered him and said, "Do this, and you will live."

On another occasion, when he preached to a large crowd from the top of a mountain, Jesus said, "Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets."

This is such a well-known verse in the bible, and shouldn't be taken lightly. In Australia, many people often say to me as a pastor, "I don't believe in God, but I believe that I should treat others in the way I should be treated." Even the aggressive British atheists, like Richard Dawkins or Christopher Hitchens, talk like this. But what these people don't realise is that they wouldn't have this life-philosophy if Jesus Christ, true God and true man, hadn't taught it to them. Not everyone around throughout the world thinks like this--and even if they try to live like this, they constantly fail and disappoint themselves and despair of their life. And when people come to hear these words of Jesus, to do unto others who you would have them do unto you, there is a certain joy that comes to a person's eyes, when they realise just how wonderful this little sentence is, and what wonderful common sense it makes. There is a certain longing that is imprinted in them, either a longing for the Garden of Eden, or for the Paradise of the next life. They realise what a utopian society we would live in, if everyone actually did this.

But if we as Christians are going to make practical sense of this little word of Jesus, "Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them," we also need to listen to what Jesus says afterwards. He says: "for this is the Law and the Prophets." In other words, I'm not teaching you anything new than what Moses and Isaiah, Jeremiah, and all the prophets of the Old Testament have already told you. Jesus also says about the dead rich man's five brothers, "If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead."

So let's take a few moments and go back to Moses and the Prophets. If we want to understand Jesus' words about how we should treat our neighbour, we need to look at the first three chapters of Genesis.

In Genesis 1:27 it says, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And

God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

We are part of this history of creation. God created the first people in his own image, and we are also part of that same creation. God is the one who has created us--sometimes we might think that our parents are the ones who created us, but that's not true. All they did was go to bed--God made the child. People who have problems with fertility understand this well--they realise that they can't make a child without God giving them the child as a gift.

So every child, even human being on earth has come into the world by a special creation of God. Every single person, from the highest to the lowest, has been spoken into existence by our loving Creator. Even though each person is born into a family, and into a society, with certain structures where we have a special responsibility for other people and where we owe a certain obedience to other people, each person is equally created by the same gracious and loving hand. And so, right from the smallest child, to the most helpless unborn child, to the most helpless refugee, to the mentally ill, to those with down-syndrome and autism, to the sick, to the weakest old person in a nursing home--God loves them all and has brought each of them into existence. Jesus himself even talks in such a way that he identifies himself with all these people, and wants us to recognise his face and his true and bodily presence in each one of them when he says, "As you did it to the least of these my brothers, you did it to me."

But also, in Genesis 3, we read that Adam and Eve fell into sin. But this means that each of us is no better than any one else before God, because "all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God."

James says, "Whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it."

So this means that each person, and each Christian, is on the same page as the most hardened of sinners: we are no better than the greediest of businesspeople, the worst of the world's liars, the cleverest and most devious criminals and extortioners. We are no better than the dirtiest of perverts, than the bloodthirsty of murderers, the most rebellious and disrespectful children, than the most bitter and twisted of workers. We are no better than those who are apathetic to God's word and sleep in on Sunday mornings, we are no better than the worst of the heretics, and we are no better than the most foolish of idol-worshippers. You see, whether or not we worship wood and stone, our hearts are still hearts of stone and we are all heading towards the same just punishment, as St Paul says, "The wages of sin is death."

And so, on the basis of all this, Jesus tells us a little parable.

We read: "[Jesus] told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with contempt."

Our parable today is about contempt, and trusting in ourselves. It's funny, as Christians, we come to church week after week, because we know the power of the gospel unto salvation and we know the great joy that comes from the pure forgiveness of sins which comes from Christ's lips. But then, as soon as we get a little crumb from God's table, we carry on as we're the one who cooked it, and we immediately rush out to kitchen to cook up our own spiritual banquet. We have received many gifts from God, but then we start to idolise the gifts. We look at others with contempt--we think that we're better than other people because of the way we act, because of the way we think, and because of the way we feel about ourselves.

And so, Jesus is telling this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with contempt.

Righteousness never comes from us. The forgiveness of sins never comes from the human heart. It has to be received into the human heart and it has to live there and dwell there, but it doesn't come from there. Righteousness does not pour out of our heart, it pours out of God's sanctuary. As soon as we stop wanting to receive Christ's own righteousness, which he won for us on the cross, we stop being Christians and we become pagans. Righteousness comes to us here on earth through the preaching of Christ crucified, through the absolution of all your sins completely and totally freely because of Christ's death and resurrection, through holy baptism, through the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, given for us and shed for us for the forgiveness of sins.

And so now, Jesus tells us his parable as a little warning to us.

Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: "God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week: I give tithes of all that I get." But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.

What a wonderful gift it is that God had protected this Pharisee from sin and temptation. What a wonderful gift it is that he has given him such a capacity to fast and pray. What wonderful gifts God had given him in his finances, such that he was able to give a tenth of all his earnings.

But there is one thing that he is wrong about. He says, "I thank you that I am not like other men." Yes, Mr Pharisee! You are exactly like other men. You are putting yourself up, and you are pushing others down to make yourself look good. You are exactly like other men. You don't have any sympathy for all the other victims of Satan's roamings all throughout the world. There are plenty of extortioners, unjust, adulterers, and tax collectors that were simply born into dysfunctional families, and don't know any better. Are you going to help them? Are you going to pray for their well-being? No, your selfish--you worship yourself and your own piety, and in that sense, you are exactly like other men.

Everyone born on this planet wants to be saved by works and wants to be their own God. If they're going to be saved, they must be saved by Jesus Christ and his works alone: his death, his resurrection, his baptism, his supper, his absolution. These are the things that make for peace.

And then the tax collector, over in the corner, standing afar off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!"

What a wonderful confession that Jesus teaches us to make here: a sinner. And the tax collector asks God to be merciful, not just in such a way that God would preserve him from physical harm in this life or heal him in his body or give him the physical strength to face the day. We should pray for these things, but this is not what the tax collector asks for. The normal word in the New Testament for "Lord have mercy" is Kyrie Eleison. But the word here means, "Make atonement for me". The tax collector says, "I can't see anything good in my flesh. All I see is my sin. If I'm going to be saved, if I'm going to live forever, then I leave my body and soul in your hands, God. I'll leave it up to you and your judgment."

But this isn't the end of the story.

Jesus says: "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted."

The end of this story is not the man's prayer, but God's verdict on these two men. "This man went down to his house justified."

In the church, we don't just leave people with their prayers for mercy and their prayers for atonement. We actually preach mercy and we preach atonement. Jesus has died on the cross for us and has actually made atonement for us. He promises his mercy to everyone who asks. He promises exaltation to everyone who is humble.

And we might think, "But I'm not humble! I'm proud and self-centred!" Good for you! Listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit in your heart, but also listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit preached in the church which says, "Even though you might not feel it, I love you nevertheless." "Even though you are a sinner, Christ still died for you."

What a wonderful loving Saviour we have who has come to meet with you in his church today, to speak his gracious words to you, and to feed you and fill your cup to the brim with his own body and blood. And what a wonderful person Jesus is that he is not ashamed to eat and drink with sinners like us, and he rules in the midst of his enemies!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the Highest!

Amen.

Lord Jesus Christ, be merciful to us who are sinners, and send us the Holy Spirit. You know even better than we do how totally corrupt and sinful we are. But we also thank you for your word of promise, and your holy gospel, which speaks to us the free forgiveness of all our sins, and cancels all our debts. Amen.

Friday of Trinity 10 [1 Corinthians 9:24-10:13] (16-Aug-2012)

This sermon was preached at Resurrection Lutheran Church, Cambridge, UK at Matins for the third day of the symposium on "Sola Scriptura", hosted by Westfield House, the theological house of the Ev Luth Ch of England, and the North European Luther Academy.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Text (1 Corinthians 9:24--10:13):

Therefore let anyone who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, send us all your Holy Spirit, and let your name be hallowed, so that your word is preached in its truth and purity, and that we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it. Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our text today begins with these words:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.

Some of the young people in my parish asked me if I was going to England to watch the olympics. Even though while I'm here, I'll never get to see any of these great professional athletes, at the same time, I have been asked to preach about the olympics, and to preach to a group of Jesus Christ's own athletes!

In Australia, sport is a very strong part of our life and identity as a nation. Often people will even come to church discussing the football scores! And sometimes, as has happened with the recent olympics, Australians start to think that we are the only country in the world that plays sport. For example, in the recent weeks, the Australian swimming team recently thought that they would smash the other countries in the pool. But they forgot one thing: there actually happens to be such a thing as the rest of the world, and they forgot that this year, other countries also decided to send some swimmers to the olympics. There are other countries that know what water is after all, and so their pride was crushed!

But St Paul today calls upon us to take the example of athletes. He says: "Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it."

When it comes to the faith, there is no second prize. You must come first, or you will lose. There is so silver and bronze medals in the kingdom of heaven. Either you win the gold medal, or you lose. Your righteousness must exceed the scribes and the pharisees. Be faithful unto death, as it says in Revelation, and I will give you the crown of life.

Jesus Christ himself has bought you with a price. The prize worth more than any treasure buried in a field has been given to you in holy baptism. Now, we are called to run, looking to Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, with a great cloud of witnesses in the stadium, cheering us on and encouraging us. Run! says St Paul. Run, that you may obtain it.

Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 

It is so important for an athlete that they are not distracted by the other competitors and they are not hindered in any way by the weakness of their flesh. Look how  determined the athletes in the recent olympics are in winning. Look at all the exercises they have to perform, all the training they must endure. I saw one Jamaican runner interviewed on the TV, who said that his coach had to ring him up on Christmas Day to make sure that he wasn't training.

Christians too are doing their exercises on Christmas Day, and every Sunday and holy day. But their training consists not in doing, working, striving, achieving, but in sitting still and ceasing from their worldly affairs, so that God will perform his work on them. Our heavenly Father is the one who speaks his word to us, reminding of us our wonderful, glorious baptism, and pumping us full of the vitamins and protein of Christ's own body and blood. He comes up and pinches the fat on our hips with his holy law and says, "Too fat!" But then he gives us the encouragement of the Scriptures, so that we might have hope, and boldness and confidence and access to our Father, in order to offer our bodies as living sacrifices with all the fat portions, so that his Son Jesus Christ may run his great race and fight his great fight in us and through us to his good pleasure. What a wonderful Saviour we have who never leaves us without the encouragement, without forgiveness, who is strong for us, and faithful for us, having won the imperishable wreath in advance and ahead of time, so that the victory is always ours, and only ours through him.

St Paul says: "So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified."

Here we have a wonderful encouraging verse! I do not run aimlessly. There are too many people today who drink coffee with Pontius Pilate and believe that there is no such thing as truth. Educational institutions make a lot about the process of learning, about the value of learning for its own sake. And so, essay-writing becomes an exercise in self-glorifying prose, and clever arguments. But God silences this false wisdom of the world, and instead gives to you to folly of certainty. GK Chesterton once said that "an open mind and an open mouth should be shut of something solid."

And so, St Paul writes here of the certainty of faith: "I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air." Let the clever scholars justify the own consciences with their many degrees and diplomas. They have already received their reward: they have already received the perishable wreath. 

But to be a doctor of theology as Dr Martin Luther calls is to have the cross of Christ applied and sealed upon us by God himself through the folly of preaching and absolution, through the folly of water, and through the folly of bread and wine. It is this certainty of faith that Martin Luther fought so hard for at the time of the reformation, and we must also fight and box for today. And it is this certainty, this boldness and confidence, that gives birth to all sorts of other by-products in this life: love for our neighbour, patience in suffering, endurance. St Paul writes, "Since we are justified by faith (that is, since we are not running aimlessly), we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God."

So St Paul makes mention of here of the physical discipline of our bodies: "But I discipline my body and keep it under control." I pummel my body and subdue it. Fasting and bodily preparation are indeed fine outward training. St Paul says, "While bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." Our bodies must not be so dull and useless that we become deaf to the word of God. Our bodies must not fall into despondency and numbness. God wants our leprosy to be healed. Nothing gives our concupiscence a good thrashing like the apostolic command to rejoice always, and again I say it, or Jesus' words to love the Lord with all your strength. So the body must be brought into subjection not in order to merit salvation or make preparations for salvation, but to keep our ears open and receptive. The most wonderful physical discipline, by the way, which our church offers, is to bring ourselves under subjection to God's righteous judgment upon us is in private confession. And I say this especially for pastors--if our laypeople are going to use this gift, pastors need to use it first. As the old saying goes, Qualis Rex Talis Grex (As the chief, so the flock). God does not require you to enumerate all sins, or even all mortal sins, as the Councils of Lateran IV and Trent say, but that you may confess those sins which you know and feel in your heart. This is a physical, bodily discipline, and often brings about a fair bit of squirming and writhing and uncomfortableness under God's law on our part. But in return, the words of absolution are given to you in exchange, a leiblich Wort, the gracious judgment of God is spoken to you in advance of the Last Day, and God's will is done on earth as it is in heaven. 

And so, now St Paul gives us a series of warnings: "For I want you to know, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual food, and all ate the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them, God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness."

Watch out, fellow runners! Usein Bolt doesn't look around at the long-jumpers while he's trying to complete the 100 metres. Don't be overthrown in the wilderness with the people of Israel!

But St Paul gives us some really wonderful words of encouragement here about the presence of Christ throughout the history of salvation. He says the spiritual Rock was Christ. Of course, whenever we think about "the Spirit" we must always think about the "word of God". 

St Paul says to the Corinthians: Listen! You have the sacraments, baptism and the Lord's Supper. But they don't work ex opere operato. God doesn't baptise people in silence, and he doesn't administer the Holy Supper to you in silence. There is always a powerful creating word, (a word of mission, a missiological word, if you like) which creates all things new, which comes together with the sacraments. Baptism and the Lord's Supper would be no use to you at all if God himself did not tell you what it is and how to use it. So there's a kind of two-fold reception of baptism: there's the reception of baptism which receives the water on the body and there's the reception that believes in the word of God that thereby trusts that by it our sins are forgiven before God in heaven, as St Peter says in chapter 3 of his first letter. In the Lord's Supper there's the physical reception of the bread and the physical drinking of the wine, but then there's the simultaneous and corresponding reception that believes in God's clear words that this consecrated bread is in actual fact the true body of Christ given for us, and that this cup of blessing that we bless is in actual fact the true blood of Christ, shed for us for the forgiveness of sins.

And so, St Paul says, the same goes for the ancient people in the Old Testament. They had manna and quail. They drank water from the rock. But God didn't do these things in silence. They didn't believe that Christ himself was their spiritual food, and that Christ himself was their spiritual Rock, speaking his words to them. They rejected these precious gifts, and started meditating about the leeks and onions and melons of Egypt. 

At the same time, the word of God was connected to the Rock, in such a way that St Paul could say that the Rock was Christ. The word of God points to Christ truly present there before his incarnation giving them water to drink in the Rock. But also the water-emitting rock points to the word of God, the spiritual Rock through which the Holy Spirit is given and on which our faith is built.

And so St Paul says: Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did.

We don't have a Rock emitting water, but we have water emitting the Holy Spirit. And baptism saves you. The water was Christ. We have the Lord's Supper, and the bread and wine was Christ. We have the words of absolution spoken through the pastor, and the mouth was Christ. The ears are Christ, the gestures are Christ. And we as pastors must always be ready and willing to hear the words of our parishioners to us: "Pastor, should I take your words as the word of God?" "Should I take your gestures, your moodiness as those of Christ himself?" And when not, we have the opportunity to model the confession of sins to them, so that they in turn will have the encouragement of our example in bringing to us their own confessions. And the ears were Christ, and the pastor's heart was Christ's dead corpse in the grave. And the absolution was Christ, and his resurrected and glorious body.

But all these things happened as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did. All these things are to be a chastisement to our concupiscence. 

And so St Paul says: "Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play."

Here have the wonderful trick of the devil exposed, which always wants to hide our sin from us. Through St Paul's words here, the Holy Spirit destroys our pretexts! "The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play." It is always the sign of the Old Adam trying to keep itself afloat when it says, "But God, I was only doing such and such. I was only eating what she gave me to eat." And so the people say, "We're only eating and drinking and playing! What's wrong with that?"

You hypocrite! You dare to put your eating and drinking in the same bucket as that of the poor people who humbly receive their bread with a glad and generous heart? You dare to put your "playing" in the same bucket as children playing outside in the sun at Christmas time in their little  paddling pool? (That's a little southern hemisphere joke!)

You know what your eating and drinking is. You know what your playing is! You know the desires of your heart. 

Pretext, pretext, pretext! We theologians must always beware that our writings and our words are not expounding of pretexts. Church leaders must beware that they don't use their church constitutions and by-laws as pretexts for disobedience of the commandments. And then the ninth and tenth commandments come firing out of eternity as twin arrows through the pretexts and smash our rocky hearts of stone in pieces! 

St Paul says: "We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for instruction, on whom the end of the of the ages has come."

If only concupiscence weren't sin after all! Wouldn't it be great! If only God hadn't added the two last commandments, one for each ear! We wouldn't have even known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet." We could have put our minds to rest, and been happy little hypocrites!

But our sin is only exposed by the law of God, and the flesh cannot pacify our conscience. The pummelling and subduing of our bodies cannot pacify our conscience. Our heart, our piety, our works are no use when it comes to dealing with the poisoned stream flowing from our heart.

So our pericope concludes with St Paul's words of comfort: "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide a way of escape, that you may be able endure it."

With the law, he will also provide the gospel, so that you may be able to endure it. 

With the sin, he will also provide the absolution, so that you may be able to endure it.

With the suffering, he will also provide his silver-refined word speaking to you from the other side of the grave outside of reason, that you may be able to endure it.

With the lost sheep and condemned pharisee, he will also provide you with Christ, so that you may be able to endure it.

With the sick body and the covetous heart, he will also provide the medicine of Christ's body and blood, so that you may be able to endure it.

Jesus Christ is the Truth, the Life and the Way of escape.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, our Good Shepherd, our Victory, our Crown, our Joy! Hosanna in the highest!

Amen.

Lord God, heavenly Father, be faithful to us today! And when our last our comes, takes us from this valley of temptation and covetousness and tears to yourself in heaven, in Jesus' holy and precious name. Amen.